The Wizard of Darkness
by KingdomHeartsII
Summary: Oz has changed alot since Sora's time, and not for the better, living in constant fear of the Heartless. Who's Sora? A legendary hero, no more than a myth. Or at least that's what the humans believe until Sora comes back.
1. Changed for the better?

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Wizard of Oz. And let us all pray Kingdom Hearts II comes out soon.

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A young girl walked slowly through the dark green grass. Her arm throbbed slightly from an after school… incident. Her mismatched eyes were downcast as if regretting some big mistake. A backpack hung loosely on her shoulders the afternoon sun glinted pleasantly upon the scene below. The girl looked up her eyes, one a dark ocean blue and the other a deep forest green, gazed forlornly at the vast endless blue sky. Not a single cloud as far as the eye could see. A pleasant breeze whipped around the girl in a playful manner lifting up her short brown hair and dropping it again. The girl wore a black shirt with long crimson sleeves despite the warm weather. Her jeans were slightly dirty at the bottom, the tops almost covering her black boots. Around the girl's neck was a black necklace, and from the end hung a sparkling emerald. It glimmered softly in the light, her earrings as well were dark emerald green but besides that she wore very little color. Her forehead was hidden beneath a black headband, and a lock of her hair was wrapped in decorative crimson string. It seemed she was trying her best to stick out of he surroundings. And truly she did not seem to really belong. She continued plodding along through the grass dejectedly, her hands behind her back, her head hung. The surrounding were cheerful but like the girl they lacked a certain variety of color. Just blue and green as far as the eye could see. At first one might find this pleasant but after a while you just got tired of seeing the same things. The colors made the heart long for variety, to see new places and to discover new things. To any heart that longed for freedom this place was no better then the most drab of prisons. The girl looked up seeing a cluster of buildings up ahead. She had obviously walked long enough for she now seemed to pick up her pace slightly. She neared the cluster of buildings, a neighborhood placed out not too far from a city. She looked behind her, only the outline of the very top great city she had just departed from was still visible. She saw the buildings all of similar size, shape, color, everything about them was almost identical. It was the same monotony she had encountered outside of the neighborhood. The girl's pace slowed again, her oddly colored eyes scanned the neighborhood, a place filled with familiarity. Sure she had been here before, but it didn't matter, even if she hadn't she still would have felt as if she had. All the neighborhoods looked the same! It was a wonder that anyone could find their own when all of them were identical down to the very last tile on the roof. People claimed they were all unique but it was just another way to say that none of them were. There was no way to express individuality in this place anymore. Things had drastically changed for this small world. The girl finally walked up the perfectly aligned pathway, through one of the identical gardens, up to the sickeningly similar two story house. The girl reached into her backpack taking out a key. She slowly unlocked the door sticking her head inside before walking completely in. She closed the door behind her with a soft click before walking to the neat and orderly kitchen and placing her book bag against the wall near the table. "Mom! I'm home!" the girl called. Her voice sounded as if she were a girl on only fourteen years, and by the looks of her that was exactly how old she was. There was the soft sound of footsteps on the stairs and a woman with golden blonde hair and a rather plain blue dress walked down the stairs.

"Jade," she said upon seeing the girl. "You're home early." The woman did not sound either pleased but nor did she sound displeased. She looked at her daughter with a probing gaze. "You didn't get in trouble _again_ did you?" When the girl, Jade, gave no response her mother let out a heavy sight. "Jayden! For what?" Her mother asked angrily.

"Fighting, ok, I was fighting!" Jade said angrily, wincing slightly at the use of her real name. Her voice had quavered slightly. Upon hearing this small break in her daughter's voice her mother looked up. Jade dared not raise her eyes to meet her mother's gaze though she could feel her eyes upon her. "I couldn't help it mom," Jade said softly, "I couldn't take it any longer they were making fun of you."

"Oh Jayden," her mom said softly. Again Jade winced not liking her mother's constant use of her real name. But her mom took no notice of that. Her mom walked over toward her putting her arms around her daughter. "Oh Jade, please don't do this." Her mom whispered softly.

"I can't help it!" Jade said pulling away. "Look what has happened! To the animals! To Oz! To you!" Jade's mother watched her, it was not this first time Jade had given this speech. "Oz used to be beautiful! The animals used to be intelligent! They used to be able to talk! Everything about Oz has changed, Mom! Everything used to be so different! No one place was like the other! We had so many different kinds of people! The Munchkins, the Flying Monkeys, the Witches!" Jade turned away looking out through a window. The yellow brick rode stuck out against the endless green grass making it the only break in the sea of monotony. "Mom, look at you used to be Glinda! The Good Witch! Don't you remember any of that? Look around you mom! Oz hasn't changed for the better! My friends Sean and Collin don't get sent home every time they do something wrong!" Jade paused for a second thinking the words she had just said over again more carefully. "Admittedly, Collin never gets in trouble…" Jade trailed off realizing she had used a bad example. "But Sean does! He gets in trouble more then I do!" Her mother, Glinda the Good Witch, was hardly recognizable. Her elaborate attire gone, and in it's place no more then drab work clothes. Glinda grabbed her daughter's arm not appreciative of Jade brining her mischievous black haired friend into this argument.

"Yes Jade, but Sean isn't half witch!" Glinda said. Her tone of voice said that the argument was over and to take this conversation no further. "Sean doesn't need to worry abut loosing control of his powers at any given moment. That is why he gets in less trouble then you do."

"Maybe if you'd _train_ me I wouldn't need to worry about loosing control!" Jade yelled angrily, not knowing when to quit before she had gotten herself into deep trouble that she could not escape. Glinda could only stand so much of her daughter's attitude and Jade had just crossed the line.

"You know I can't train you Jade!" Glinda yelled angrily. "It is forbidden! All magic that is not the wizard's doing is forbidden! It is the law! And you are at a dangerous stage of your life in which your powers can often times go haywire, even in times when it is unprovoked! So getting angry like this will get you hurt! Or worse!" Glinda yelled tears in her eyes. She couldn't stand the thought of loosing her beloved daughter. Jade seemed to have calmed slightly a book fell to the ground, Glinda knew Jade had levitated it in her anger, it was natural for her powers to activate. But it could be so dangerous in an untrained witch, even is she was only half.

"He never would have stood for this." Jade said darkly finally meeting her mother's eyes. Glinda knew exactly who her daughter was speaking of, and she knew Jade was absolutely right. But there was nothing that could be done.

"Jade, Sora disappeared well over three thousand years ago." Glinda said softly. "You and I both know he would have never let this happen. He would have fought against the Heartless until his dieing day. But he's dead now. You can't keep saying he'll come back. Sora did all he could, Jade, but it just wasn't enough. At least be grateful the Heartless have not come to Oz. Be grateful the Wizard is taking all these precautions to insure our safety. After all Jade, Sora's gone, and he isn't coming back. All we have now is the wizard. I know it's hard but your old enough to be aware of the danger we're in."

"Look around us mom! I'd rather face the Heartless then live through this! There is nothing to be grateful for! Wizard or no Wizard the Heartless are coming! He is only delaying the inevitable. And making our lives worse in the process." Jade broke away from her mother's grip and walked slowly up the stairs. She stopped just before she was out of sight. Turning around she looked at her mother, an unreadable expression on her face. "And your wrong mom," Jade said softly, "Sora is coming back. He wouldn't leave the universe in shambles like this. He is coming back… I just know it." And with those words, Jade turned around and vanished up the stairs.

"Maybe your right," Glinda said to herself, for she knew Jade was far out of hearing range. " Not about Sora, but about the Heartless." Glinda walked over to the window looking out over the vast plain of grass. Her eyes followed the yellow brick road. It was a single crack in an endless green sea. Glinda had long ago seen signs of the Heartless approaching, even here in her safe haven of Oz. "Maybe we are just delaying the inevitable."

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Ok this is my first try at this so tell me what you think 


	2. The Heartless of Oz

Hurray! Next Chapter is up, still no reviews? That stinks. Does no one like this story?

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Donald opened an icy blue eye, where was he? The panicked though hit him at once, then slowly everything came back to him. He was in the small containment unit Naminé had put them in to restore their memories. But wasn't he supposed to be asleep? He closed his eye again and took a deep breath trying to gather his thoughts. He still remembered Castle Oblivion, yet he still remembered everything else as well. There were footsteps outside his unit that drew him from his thoughts. At once his eyes shot open, looking around him frantically, but it was difficult to see. "Well, well, well, look at the great heroes now." a voice laughed to herself. Donald recognized it at once as Naminé, but he did not like the way she had just spoken to him. "At once you three were the most feared names in all of Kingdom Hearts. Now look at you." She laughed lightly and Donald heard her footsteps draw nearer to his unit. At once he closed his eyes pretending to be asleep. "But you…" Naminé trailed off making Donald's heart beat faster. Had she realized he was not really asleep? "You Donald, are much more trouble then you're worth, in my opinion at least." Donald hardly dared to breathe, he was so close to discovery, yet Naminé appeared to be clueless of his awakening. "It takes so much magic to keep you asleep, your stupid magic always interfering with my spells." He heard her move away from him, probably towards Goofy or Sora. Donald relaxed slightly; the worst of the danger had passed, though it was best to still move as little as possible. "But what damage can you do now? I mean just look at you. The magic had such a strange effect…" Naminé laughed. Donald paused. What exactly did she mean by that? He slowly moved his arm to look at it, at once his heart stopped. Instead on his beautiful glossy white feathers there was…. Skin! He twisted around frantically looking at himself. He was human! He tugged on his baggy blue pants experimentally, this was real alright. He stopped suddenly as Naminé spoke again. "What was that noise?" she asked angrily. Donald froze and fell limp trying to pretend he was still asleep. He had to remember that Naminé could hear him if he moved. He held his breath as she walked over examining him once again, but this time more carefully. "It must have been my imagination." She said laughing to herself nervously. "But just to make sure I better increase the strength of the spell." Donald felt his pulse rush; no way was he going to be stuck asleep again! "No!" Naminé muttered angrily to herself. "I'm too low on magic, I better wait till tomorrow." She turned and as her footsteps died away Donald let out a sigh of relief. That was much too close for comfort. Donald reached into one of his many pockets and removed his staff. The Save the Queen staff glimmered pleasantly before him. At least he still had a way out of here. He mouthed to words to a spell and at once the staff lit up and a fireball struck the glass before him breaking it. The spell holding him in place broke along with the glass, allowing Donald to move freely. He stumbled out of his hiding place, trying his best not to cut himself on the shards of glass. It was difficult with his new feet. He paused looking trying to see if the noise had brought Naminé back, luckily for him it had not. Donald turned to the unit in front of him. The boy in there had black hair and a strange hat with flaps that hung like dog ears beside his head. Donald saw the all too familiar shield strapped on the boy's back. This was Goofy! Donald looked at himself once again. Short snow white hair fell into his sharp blue eyes. He was considerably shorter then Goofy, and appeared to be no older then Sora. Other then the baggy pants that hid his shoes from view, and the actual shoes themselves, his outfit, like Goofy's had remained the same.

"Fiagra!" Donald yelled, but not loud enough to reach the ears of Naminé. A fire ball burst from the end of his staff and collided with the unit holding Goofy. The glass shattered causing Donald to jump back a few steps to avoid being scraped. Goofy fell from the unit though he was still asleep. Donald ran out and caught him before he collided with the sharp shards of glass littering the floor. "Goofy! Goofy! Wake up!" Donald urged shaking his fried trying to rouse him from his magic induced sleep. "Wait a second, is that my voice?" Donald asked surprised. He hadn't noticed the change earlier but his voice was hard to recognize.

"Aw, c'mon Donald." Goofy groaned bringing up his arm to block out the bright lights of the castle. "Just five more minuets please?" Goofy also did not sound much like himself. Donald was tempted to drop Goofy right there but resisted the urge.

"No Goofy wake up now!" Donald ordered not really in the mood to play games. He had gotten lucky twice now. Naminé still hadn't heard the glass shattering. But he wasn't sure how long his luck would last. "Or I'll call down lightning to wake you up like I did before." He threatened; Goofy moaned again.

"Ok, ok," Goofy grumbled. He stood up shaking his head. He looked around in surprised. "Hey where did Donald go?" He asked himself. He looked down noticing his new human form for the first time. "Better yet, what happened to me!"

"No time to explain, but whatever it was, it got me too." Donald said. "But we need to find Sora and get out of here!" Goofy nodded, one good thing about him is he could easily accept the fact that he and Donald had turned human seemingly over night. But that brought his attention to another fact. He had no idea how long they had been in those units. But that wasn't important at the moment. What was, was the fact that they needed to find Sora. Donald ran up to the last unit. "Fiagra!" he yelled again. The glass shattered as it had done each time before. But Sora awoke before he hit the ground. He spread out his arms and glided to safety.

"Excuse me kid!" Sora said spotting Donald. He ran over looking around him at the other two broken units. "Thanks for getting us out of there but Naminé would have done so eventually." Sora said with a grin. "Hey the other two you freed, where did they go?" Donald sighed; of course Sora didn't recognize them. He was looking for a duck and a dog.

"Sora you lunkhead we are Donald and Goofy!" Donald said mildly aggravated. Sora stared at them a bit with piercing ocean blue eyes. It wasn't long before recognition began to sink in. Sora backed up looking around the room then at his two, now teenage human friends.

"Donald! Goofy! What happened you guys?" He asked surprised. But he closed his eyes breathing deeply. He opened them again having calmed himself down slightly. "Ok, now can either of you tell me what's going on around here?" Goofy shrugged but Donald nodded thoughtfully.

"Yes but not now, we need to get out of here." He announced. Sora nodded taking out his Keyblade and Goofy removed his shield. Donald ran towards the door they had to get out of Oblivion before they were discovered. Right now, the explanation was the least of there worries.

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"Jade down here!" her friends called. Jade ran over to her bedroom window. Looking below her she spotted Collin and Sean. Sean looked up at her his emerald eyes gleamed mischievously; it was he who had been calling her. "Come on down here if you want to learn some real magic!" Glinda was right, Sean wasn't half witch, he was all Wizard. Collin on the other hand was just an Emerald City citizen, dressed in all green with green tinted glasses that slid down his nose. Jade grinned excitedly, opening her window and climbing out onto the roof. Her mom had put her on the second story in hopes to stop her from sneaking out like this but it hadn't slowed her down at all. She walked carefully across the neatly tiled roof, reaching part of the perfect white fenced wall of their garden. She climbed down the fencing and ran out to greet her friends.

"I wish you wouldn't sneak out like this." Collin grumbled not looking at her. It figured he would act like this, he always did. Collin liked to go by the rules, and to set a good example. He was a straight A student who never got in trouble at school or out of it. Jade rolled her eyes and began to walk through the neighborhood.

"Relax four eyes," Sean said cheerfully. He put an arm on top of Collin's head using him as an armrest. Collin pulled away and followed Jade. Much unlike Collin, Sean was one of the biggest trouble makers in the universe. But he could never get in trouble; he was the Wizard's personal assistant. Sean followed last walking along as if this were an everyday event of breaking Glinda's rules, and in actuality, it was. "Hey race you!" he challenged running ahead of Jade. It was just like him to start a competition, after all Sean never passed up a chance to be the best.

"You're on!" Jade called running after him. She heard Collin sigh from behind her and run off after them. Jade loved the feel of the wind on her face as she ran through the identical streets after Sean. It felt so good to be out of the house for once. Finally she caught up with Sean at the finish line which happened to be the end of the neighborhood. Collin came in last as always. "You know one day I'm going to beat you." Jade said leaning against the side of a spotless white house trying to catch her breath. She looked around her at the endless green grass and not too far off, the swirling form of the yellow brick road. The sun had almost fully set and the fields of green were bathed in shadow. "It's not fair that you always win." Sean cupped his hands; green light pulsed from within them.

"Here," he said opening them. Inside was a small trophy composed completely of emerald flame. It floated in his palm with a cheerful glow. "For our lovely second place winner!" Sean said snapping his fingers. The flamed swirled again forming the shape of a heart. Jade looked at it with longing, Sean had the amazing ability to control his powers. He often claims the Wizard is no help when it comes to magic, but he had to have done something to allow Sean amazing control like this. A chain sprouted from the heart, composed of the same emerald colored flame. Jade walked closer amazed by the constantly changing flame in Sean's hand. "You see it's all mind over matter." Sean said as-a-matter-of-factly. The heart flew toward her and the chain closed around her wrist. As soon as it wrapped completely around the flame died down and it turned a normal color. "I hope you like it." Sean said with a grin. "It has no clasp; I haven't mastered that part yet."

"It's beautiful." Jade said examining it. It fit perfectly around her wrist, but Sean was right. She would have serious trouble if she wanted to get it off. The bracelet had no clasp. "How do you do it? Whenever I try something like that it always backfires."

"It could be a number of things." Collin said. He always got left out in these magic conversations. "The fact that your half and he's whole, the fact that he can be trained legally and you can't, it could be that you have a temper problem-" But Jade cut him off.

"I do NOT have a temper problem!" she snapped angrily. The wind around them began to swirl in a menacing fashion and dark clouds swirled over head. Sean looked up nervously and Collin followed his gaze.

"All right just calm down, stop using your powers." Collin said quietly. Not that there was really anyone around to hear him, but he was not a big fan of magic period, it always made him uncomfortable to talk about it. Even if there was no one around to hear.

"That isn't me…" Jade announced worriedly. She had calmed down enough so that if she had been causing it, it would have dissipated by now. But instead the storm still brewed stronger then ever. She looked around her fear almost visible on her face. The black ground was not colored the way it was only because of the night… black creatures pulled them from the ground. Creatures with black skin and piercing yellow eyes, the likes of which the three had only seen in their history books. "The Heartless!" Jade yelled.

"If anyone hasn't noticed this is bad!" Collin yelled jumping to his feet. "The definition of bad, for those of you who don't know, is not good! And in special cases like this, we're going to die." Collin announced. His words were absolutely not necessary for everything he said, Jade and Sean already knew.

"Thanks for the lesson, but it was highly unnecessary." Jade replied looking around at the Heartless. They were taller then most Shadows and their eyes were not round but slanted. They walked almost completely erect, and their claw-like hands were perfect for stealing hearts. "Sean! Collin! You two go to Emerald City! We have to warn the Wizard!"

"Wait!" Collin called running over to her as Sean used his magic to clear a path for them to run. "What about you Jade?" He grabbed her by the hand, not letting go until he knew for sure that she was not planning to take the Heartless on by herself.

"I'm going to warn the others, now RUN!" Jade yelled. Collin nodded running after Sean. Jade on the other hand fled back into the neighborhood. She fought past the wind which was blowing violently against her. She had to reach the center of town; there was an alarm system there, if she could only reach it… She ran faster finally seeing the high watcher platform on which the alarm was located. She climbed up the rickety wooden ladder as fast as the wind would allow. She slipped several times but at last she made it to the top. She ran across the platform to the crank. Grasping it tightly in her hands she began to turn the handle. The faster she turned the louder the alarm wailed. People began to evacuate their houses running outside to see why the alarm was sounding. Finally it seemed as if Jade had gotten everyone outside. She scrambled down the ladder and stood before the crowd. "Citizens of Oz! The Heartless have arrived!" There was a low murmur through the crowed and someone began to push their way forward.

"Jayden!" her mother's voice broke through the murmur as Glinda pushed her way forward through the dense mass of people. "Jayden, what's going on? What do you mean the Heartless?" Jade looked at her mother unsure if she believed her. Glinda seemed slightly taken aback by the serious look on her daughter's face. "They're here." Glinda whispered. "Where are Collin and Sean?" Glinda asked quickly.

"They went to warn the Wizard. Mom the Heartless have finally arrived we've got to do something!" Jade said her voice shaking with fear. It was hard to believe the day they had always dreaded had finally dawned. The Awakening had finally come to Oz.

"Go with them Jade." Glinda ordered. "You'll be safe with the Wizard. His magic can protect you against anything the Heartless try. Quickly, go to the Emerald City!" Glinda began to push her daughter in the direction Jade had sent Collin and Sean.

"Mom, I can take care of myself!" Jade begged. It was hard to hear without yelling for the wind was growing stronger by the second. Glinda wasn't at all convinced by her daughter's statement. "Let me stay with you, if we use our powers-" Jade began, but her mother cut her off.

"Not now Jayden!" Glinda snapped, acting a bit harshly out of worry. She turned back to the pale faced citizens of Oz. They were looking around frantically unsure about the truth in Jade's warning. "Leave Jayden I'll handle things here." Glinda ordered. Jade was about to object but Glinda would not hear it. "Now!" Glinda yelled. Jade ran off hearing her mother address the frightened citizens. "People of Oz, what we have feared has finally become reality. The Awakening is upon us! The Heartless have arrived! Arm yourselves, the elderly, sick, and the children should head for the city at once…" her mother's voice faded out as she ran. She looked over her shoulder until the small white cluster of houses was out of sight. Then she looked before her toward the giant city which was rising rapidly into view. Heartless were pooping up all around her, she jumped to the side to avoid one as it spun around to strike her down. She turned around blasting down one of the Heartless with a ball of emerald green energy. Another sprang toward her. Jade levitated a large nearby rock and the Heartless collided with it. But Jade could feel the control over her powers slipping away. Rocks began to zoom around at random, she was still unable to control her power, even in a time when she needed to most. She turned to run tripping over one of her own rocks. The Heartless advanced, their sharp yellow eyes gleaming mercilessly against the night sky. One leaped for the kill but their path was blocked by an emerald shield.

"Sean!" Jade called. She scrambled attempting to get to her feet. The wind felt as if it were strong enough to be a hurricane, and still the force continued to increase. Jade spotted her black haired friend behind her, at once he ran over helping her to her feet.

"C'mon!" he yelled running towards the city gates which were now only a few yards away. Collin already went in! I wanted to wait for you, to make sure you got here ok." Jade nodded following Sean to the door. Sean stopped just as he was about to enter. "Come on, we can leave Oz!" he said suddenly. "It's easy now; all we have to do is leave. No one can stop us, we'll be free Jade. Free to use magic as we please!"

"Are you mad?" Jade asked almost frightened by the look in her friend's eyes. Sean laughed calmly as if this were all some big joke. He extended his hand towards Jade. Jade took a step away from it; she did not at all like this.

"Come on Jade, we can go, just you and I. I'm not afraid of the Darkness!" Sean shouted to the sky as if he no longer cared what might happen or where he was going. Jade looked at him all of this was happening to fast for her. "Come on Jade, your strong enough to follow me. We can go together; we must learn to put our faith in the Darkness. Look around us, there is nothing for us here any longer. C'mon Jade, I'm not afraid of the Darkness. Are you?"

"Sean this isn't like you!" Jade begged. "Stop it! Please!" She looked at him then turned her gaze to the ground no longer able top look him in the eyes. "Sean!" She yelled jumping backward for his feet were already engulfed in dark shadow and it was swirling around him growing higher by the second. The doors to Emerald City opened slowly and just enough so that Jade could slide in.

"You can't run forever Jade!" Sean yelled as she slipped through the doors. "They'll find you! You can not escape the Darkness!" He may have said more but at that point Jade shut the doors blocking out his voice, and hopefully the Heartless as well.

"Hello?" She yelled but the city seemed to be empty, this was defiantly not a good sign. Her voice echoed off the walls adding to the already eerie surroundings. She looked around the only light came from the dim glow of the emeralds. She spotted Collin outside the door to the Wizard's room. His eyes were grayish in color no longer a brilliant blue. "Collin!" Jade yelled running toward him.

"Jade?" he asked weakly. He looked up at her over the rims of his glasses. "Is that you?' he asked again. He sounded so weak… Collin fell over unable to stand any longer. Jade ran to him but he simply fell right through the ground as if he had never really been there to begin with. The door to the Wizard's room creaked slowly open. Jade walked towards it but found her feet were held tightly to the ground. Darkness swirled up from under her just like it had done to Sean.

"This world has been connected." A voice muttered it seemed to come from all around her. "Tied to the Darkness, soon to be completely eclipsed." Jade tried to block out the voice, trying to break free of Darkness's hold. It was up to her waist now. "There is so very much to learn." the voice continued. It sounded so smooth and strong, obviously belonging to a guy, but there was no one in sight and it certainly wasn't the Wizard's voice. "And you understand so little." Jade felt the Darkness completely. She felt as if she were floating. Then suddenly she lost consciousness unable to hold out any longer in the overwhelming Darkness.

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PLEASE REVIEW! I... I've got cookies? 


	3. A Fading World

Jade opened her eye, where was she? She thought to herself, and why was it raining? She sat up looking around her, she was in some kind of alley; dark storm clouds swirled menacingly over her head. Silvery rain fell in sheets and icy winds were swirling around her making her shiver so violently she dropped what she had been holding. Wait a second, Jade thought; she hadn't been holding anything earlier. She looked at the ground beside her and almost dropped her items in shock. Keyblades! One in each hand! The first gleamed as if completely made of silvery moonlight. Its form shimmered under her fingers as if ready to vanish at any moment. The second was more of an eerie color, its green base blazed with the internal light of a thousand emerald flames. Jade quickly scrambled to her feet, suddenly being hit with memories of what happened. She had to get moving, she had to return to Oz. She needed to find her mother, to find Collin …to find Sean. It all seemed like a horrible dream. Everything that had happened was mixed up, blurred in her mind. But Sean's betrayal was sharp she could not just forget something like that, had he meant any of it? It seemed so impossible now. But now was not the best time to just stand around and think; the rain was pouring down mercilessly and the wind felt as if it were coming from the coldest part of the Universe. Jade shivered again, so violently, she almost lost her balance. Not only was this making her feel miserable, it was going to give her an early death if she didn't get warm soon. She pushed against the icy wind trying her best to find an open building among the darkened buildings of the mysterious world she had found herself on. But as she continued, it became harder and harder to keep moving. The wind continued to blow without lightening up in the least, and the longer she kept going the more she'd have to stop and shiver. Her breath crystallized before her, the rain felt like sleet pounding on her face. She was too wet to start a fire, even with the aid of her magic. Jade continued to trudge along, thinking that her current situation could not possibly get any worse. She was cold, wet, and only the Wizard knew how far she was from Oz. She looked ahead of her; still all the windows in the buildings she passed were dark. Wherever she was it was fairly deserted all the people had evacuated or… There was a hissing noise that brought Jade's attention to the ground. At first she had thought the dark water was simply the reflection of the black sky above. But a closer examination revealed that the black was actually moving. Thunder rumbled its warning above her head. She stepped backward and not a moment too soon Right where her foot had been a sleek black hand broke through the water. Jade looked around her, everywhere sleek black creatures were pulling themselves up. She was completely surrounded! She had read about these Heartless in her History Books. NeoShadows: One of the strongest Heartless types in existence, if confronted allow Professional to take care of them. Jade lashed out with her Keyblades but the Heartless seemed only to find her weapons a mild annoyance at most. They shook off her attacks with unnerving ease. Suddenly lightning struck before her making one of the advancing NeoShadows retreat in anger. Jade looked up to see a figure in the distance. At the same time the figure spotted her. They blasted their way into the circle using some type of gun weapon. "Come on this way!" The figure instructed. They sounded like a girl no older then Jade. For a brief moment Jade considered not following, but what choice did she have? She followed the girl as she blasted her way out of the circle of NeoShadows and into a nearby building. Once inside Jade got a better look at her rescuer. A young blonde girl around her own age with sharp green eyes. She dressed rather simply except for the goggles she wore on her head almost hidden by the unruly blonde hair. "Hey you ok?" The girl asked walking over. Jade nodded wordlessly. They were in some kind of shop; thankfully a fire was burning nearby. "I'm glad, but you look like a drowned Heartless." the girl laughed. She looked at the Keyblades her eyes widening. "It's YOU!" She exclaimed happily. She ran to Jade embracing her ecstatically. "You! You're the new Keyblade Master?" Jade nodded, the girl seemed to have known about this longer than she had. Was there some kind of memo she had missed?

"I think there must be some kind of misunderstanding really... You saw how well I was fighting out there. I think the Keyblades made a mistake or something." Jade said uncertainly. She had been longing for variety in her life since she had been very young. But this was a little more than she bargained for. The girl couldn't be any older then she was, yet she seemed so familiar with the Heartless. Skillfully using her gun like weapon; how long had she been dealing with them?

"I heard there was a new Keyblade Master but I thought it was just a roomer! You know like the one about Sora coming back? But here you are! The real Keyblade Master! That means that something big is about to happen and you've been chosen to take part in it and save the Universe from the Heartless! The Keyblades Never make a mistake… Chosen One." The girl took a deep breath, grinning widely. She seemed to know so much about the current situation. Again Jade was forced to wonder if there was some kind of intergalactic bulletin board with her name and the words: Keyblade Master beside it and she had just missed it. "Can I go with you? When you go off to save the Universe? Please! I'm really good with my weapon! I promise I won't slow you down any!" Jade looked at the girl as if she were speaking Arabian. Well, Jade really did need help. She couldn't exactly take care of herself as she had demonstrated a few minuets ago. And the girl did know more about what was going on. Her mom would never allow anything like that…

"I don't see why not," Jade said confidently. She could use all the help she could get. The girl's face lit up when she agreed. It must have been a long dream for the girl because she seemed as if she didn't quite believe Jade had agreed. "I'm Jade and you are?"

"Rikku!" The girl said excitedly. "My name is Rikku; I came here a few years ago and have been stuck here ever since." She walked over to a shelf in the store. She pulled out a dark gray coat. "Here, you'll need this it's cold out there." Rikku said handing it to Jade. "This shop belongs to a friend of mine. She won't mind if you take it." Rikku reassured her. "She's a battle trainer, Quistis Trappe; she'll teach you everything you need to know about fighting Heartless. She taught me." Rikku said with a grin.

"A battle trainer, you're serious?" Jade asked hoping she didn't sound as relieved as she felt. Finally, someone who could help her train to fight Heartless so she wouldn't be completely clueless when she did whatever it was she had to do.

"The best of the best," Rikku added with a grin. "She taught me how to use my special gun." She held it up allowing Jade to see it clearly for the first time. It resembled a gun with some king of strange circle around the place where the bullets should come out. "It let's me use the special abilities of Heartless against them. Once I learn one all I have to do is shoot and poof no more Heartless. Like that Thunder attack you saw me use earlier I learned from a Yellow Opera." The door at the back of the shop swung open a young woman with long blonde hair and glasses magnifying her intelligent blue eyes walked in. She dressed in clothing better suited for the dark environment around them. She looked at Jade quizzically. "Jade, this is Quistis." Rikku said.

"Pleasure to meet you." Quistis said giving Rikku a questioning look. Suddenly her sharp blue eyes spotted the two Keyblades hanging in Jade's hands. "Ah yes!" She said loosing her collective composer, though only briefly, giving way to childish excitement. At once she was back to her calm collective self. "Well done Rikku. Jade, am I right?" Jade nodded and opened her mouth to speak but Quistis shook her head. "No time, you must eat, dry off, and get some rest. Tomorrow your training will begin."

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_1 MONTH LATER

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_

Sora looked around him. The rain constantly dripping in his sharp blue eyes was not at all helping him navigate his way through Traverse Town. It had changed so much since his last visit, and it wasn't for the better. The ongoing storm seemed as if it would never end. This kind of thing could happen if a world relied too much on darkness. But why? First of all Traverse Town had been destroyed when he sealed Kingdom Hearts. It was no longer needed because the Heartless would not destroy worlds any longer, thus no one could go here when their world was lost. So its return alone was bad news, but the overwhelming darkness that dwelled within the overly silent streets? It was too much for Sora to comprehend. He had been gone for no more then a few weeks and in that amazingly short span of time the universe had fallen almost completely under Darkness's spell. Thunder rumbled in the distance making both Donald and Goofy jump. Though they had been turned human no skill had been lost. They were still his old friends they just looked slightly different. But right now he just longed for the comfort of Kairi; it was so hard seeing the effects of his failed mission. Something to his right grabbed his attention; a hooded figure was standing looking at him. He blinked and they vanished. To his left Sora heard the all too familiar hissing of NeoShadows. "Donald. Goofy," Sora said suddenly. Both his companions stopped looking at him quizzically. "I heard something to our left. You two check it out. I'll go to the right and see if it was a distraction." Donald opened his mouth to object but Sora shook his head walking off to the right. He heard the sound of his friends' footsteps fade away melting into the steady thud of rain. Soon rainfall was the only sound that filled his expert ears. He saw the hooded figure not too far up ahead. So far the only hooded people he had met were members of the Organization, not the most pleasant of people. He took out his Keyblade approaching the person with extreme caution. It was too dark to see more than the outline of the figure but Sora felt he should not retreat to light. That would show weakness. The figure did not retreat either So Sora swung at them experimentally. They blocked with weapons of their own. It was too dark to tell more about the weapons other than there were two. The figure struck back knocking Sora backward slightly. He recovered at once charging back at the figure this time hitting them in the right shoulder making them drop one of their weapons. They reached down to pick it up and Sora charged, but they had been expecting this and rolled to their side grabbing their second weapon and cracking Sora's spine with their first. Sora let out a small cry of pain he had not expected such a strong blow. He fell to the ground but kicked out knocking his opponent off their feet as well. He rolled over grabbing them from behind trying to hold them down. But suddenly the figure shook an arm free and raised it up. Sora felt himself lifted off the ground. The figure pointed forward and Sora found himself thrown against a wall. The two charged at each other their weapons making a loud clang that broke the silence that had fallen over them like a knife. Sora was winning pushing his mysterious opponent toward the ground. Suddenly lightning sizzled through the sky illuminating his opponent. Under the hood was the face of a girl around his own age. Her eyes were mismatched one blue and one green. She saw him as well for the first time as the lightning showered them with bright revealing light. The girl looked at him with disbelieving eyes. She dropped to the ground Sora reached out grabbing only her necklace. The string broke as the girl ran off vanishing before Sora could say anything at all to her. He looked at the necklace in his hand. It was a long thin emerald glowing with bright intense light. He pocketed the emerald necklace. When he found her again he could ask her all the questions that had started to buzz in his mind. "Who was she?" Sora asked the most urgent of the questions aloud. Yet there was still one more that deserved his full attention. "And why did she run?"

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Please Review! 


	4. Fantasy becomes Reality

Jade sat on one of the three chairs in the back of Quistis's store the other two were occupied by of course Quistis herself who sat solemn faced across from Jade, and Rikku who had to keep getting up and pacing the room. Jade was beginning to feel as if the shop was her home, having been here for a month and a week, or maybe two weeks, it was hard to keep track of time in Traverse Town. The days and nights in this strange new world were the exact same, Day and night had no difference between them the only way to tell the time was by watch but even then you could never be sure if it was AM or PM your watch could be off by several hours and you'd never know. That got very annoying very quickly, everyone on Traverse Town was on a different schedule, unless you made it so, no two watched were on the same time, and since everyone went by the time displayed only on their watch it became dreadfully confusing. But that was something you needed to become accustomed to. You needed to get ready several hours early and wait several hours past the assigned meeting time before you were sure whether or not your companion was to show or not. As annoying as this was Jade had managed to become used to it. Quistis had set the both Rikku's and her own watch to mach the store clock. That way at least _they_ would be on the same time schedule. But Jade could only wish the awkward silence that had overcome her and her companions was caused only by Quistis being upset at something as simple as being tardy. True enough Quistis had little tolerance for tardiness, but Jade was in here for something much more serious. Jade's eyes tore from her instructor to her companion; Rikku had never liked silence, especially the awkward blanket that was smothering the group at this moment. You could always tell when she was nervous, like now for instance, Rikku was walking around the room. For brief periods she's remain still but only to suffer a burst of energy moments later. When she was sitting she'd shake her foot or rock back and forth unable to hold still. Eventually when Rikku could sit still no longer she'd get up and wander aimlessly around. At last the silence had reached its peak and if it was not broken Jade was sure it would crush them all into Oblivion. "Instructor Trappe! Rikku! You need to believe me I saw him really!" Jade shouted unable to contain herself any longer. There was a crashing sound; Jade knew at once Rikku had bumped into something. The slightly jumpy teen had not been expecting Jade's sudden outburst and it must have scared her to death. Quistis looked up her gaze, which had previously been on the floor, was now directed on her young pupil. Jade bit her lip, why was she just sitting in silence. She knew what she saw, and Rikku herself had seen something odd happening. So why was Quistis acting like it was some kind of felony to say what Jade knew for a fact she had seen. "I saw him I really did, and he dealt me a nasty blow to the shoulder as well." Jade added trying to lighten the mood. Jade rubbed her right shoulder which was still rather sore, Quistis had not healed it completely and Jade had no idea how to cast a healing spell.

"You might have been tired, you've been training hard and non stop. A nice break might do you some good." Quistis suggested. Jade stared at her blonde haired instructor in disbelief. Quistis's eyes flashed at once to the ground, unable to make contact with the disbelieving stare of her student.

"I don't believe this!" Jade said angrily. Quistis looked up sharply, Jade calmed at once not wanting to get on Quistis's bad side after everything Quistis and Rikku had done for her. Giving her a home, food, shelter, they didn't have to but they did. Jade sighed. "Please Instructor, I know what I saw-" Quistis held up a silencing hand and at once Jade closed her mouth.

"You know what you thought you saw, Jade. The mind can play trick on you quite easily when you're tired. You have been wanting to see him and now you thought you have. It's not that I think your crazy I just think you jumped to conclusions too quickly." Quistis pushed herself up to her feet looking down at Jade with almost motherly concern. Jade felt a sudden pang of home sickness, missing her mother, her friends, her home… she shook her head trying to clear it.

"Maybe your right." Jade said her eyes falling to the floor in a mix of confusion and embarrassment. Quistis had a point, ever since arrival Jade had been longing to find Sora. A childish fantasy that only seemed to be causing her confusion, plus whoever was fighting her she let escape because she had been so convinced that he was Sora.

"Don't beat yourself up about it; it happens to the best of us." Quistis said putting a comforting hand on Jade's shoulder. "I was once so tired I was convinced a Shadow Heartless was Zell." Jade smiled slightly at the mental picture of her Instructor lecturing a Shadow. Quistis looked out of the window the rain was a steady, light drizzle. "The weather is nice today." Quistis said changing the subject much to Jade's relief. "I think you and Rikku should go outside, take a walk do something besides lay around the shop and let your muscles deteriorate." Quistis had gone into "Normal Mode" and there was no disagreeing with her when she was like this. Normal Mode was the nickname Rikku and Jade had giving to the times when Quistis lost her professional air and was actually acting her age, which they figured to be about eighteen or nineteen. "That wasn't a suggestion girl's it was an order!" Quistis said cheerfully. The sudden release of tension had obviously driven their instructor mad so Rikku and Jade followed orders and went outside. Jade didn't bother pulling up the hood of her raincoat the light drizzle felt good on her face, the cool winds danced around her playfully. Traverse Town was not at all like it had been the day Jade arrived. Back then it seemed more prison like then an actual town.

"Well Instructor Trappe seems to be in a good mood." Rikku giggled her light blonde hair was pulled back into a wild ponytail. Just when Jade was beginning to think Rikku would wear her hair normally for once, she was proved wrong. Riku had used her favorite hairstyle today, or at least Jade assumed it was her favorite because she used it the most. Her wild hair was pulled back into a ponytail and the most unruly strands were kept out of her eyes by a pair of goggles which Rikku used as a headband.

"Is it just me or does Instructor Trappe have the weirdest mood swings of anyone currently in existence?" Jade asked with a grin. Rikku laughed nodding as the two walked down the deserted streets of the Town. Though Traverse Town was not completely deserted, Quistis, Rikku, and Jade were the only people crazy enough to leave the sanctuary of a building and actually go out into the streets. "Hey Race you down the street!" Jade called running off. Rikku blinked in surprise.

"Hey no fair you got a head start!" she yelled laughing as she ran after Jade. Jade stuck her tongue out at her companion not slowing down in the least. She was acting so competitive she reminded herself of… Sean. Jade shook her head, no time to worry about that now; all she should be thinking about was beating Rikku. "Cheater!" Rikku laughed. Jade turned her head around to shout something back but she wasn't watching where she was going and crashed into someone heading very quickly in the opposite direction. Jade and the other person were both completely knocked over. Jade fell to the ground with a thud.

"I am SO sorry!" she said quickly. She rubbed her head which had made direct contact with the soaking pavement below her. Jade pulled herself to her feet rubbing her right shoulder which had already been injured once that month and was now throbbing once again. Offering her hand to the person she had collided with, she glanced back at Rikku who had skidded to a halt avoiding tripping over her. But the blonde seemed to be in some kind of trance looking directly behind Jade. Jade dismissed this and made another attempt to apologize for running into the person. "Look I wasn't looking where I was going and I-" She cut off.

"It's fine really, I was looking for you anyway." replied the boy taking Jade's hand. Jade blinked stunned. Shaking her head she pulled the boy to his feet. The boy shook his head raindrops clinging to his spiky brown hair. His ocean blue eyes were concentrated on Jade who sudden felt like a complete moron. She had been staring open mouthed at this boy for who knows how long. "I believe this belongs to you?" The boy asked holding up a black necklace with a shimmering emerald on the end.

"Y….Yeah." Jade said finally regaining the ability to speak. She carefully took the necklace from him, still unsure about what she was seeing. Hadn't Quistis said he wasn't real? Why was he here now? In front of Rikku? Jade just stared at him.

"Ok I'm starting to feel kind of like an idiot right now." The boy said shifting nervously under Jade's probing gaze. The boy finally spoke again obviously unnerved. He was not keen on being stared at. "I'm Sora."


	5. A Nonexistant Happy Ending

Thanks for all the reviews! Keep reviewing! And you get to hear a bit about what happened to Riku in this chapter!

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Jade swept the floor of the shop trying to get the last of the shards of a broken potion bottle into the dustpan that Rikku was holding. She looked behind her at the closed door, behind which Quistis was explaining the three thousand one hundred and thirteen year gap that Sora had missed out on. It's not like Jade needed to be in the room because what had started out as a simple explanation had turned into an all out war of who can shout the loudest: Instructor Quistis Trappe vs. Sora, Donald, and Goofy. Or at least, Sora had called the two teenage boys with him Donald and Goofy. In Jade's book Donald had been a duck and Goofy had been a dog, but the two boys who were accompanying Sora were teenagers only a year or two older than Jade. After gaining the ability to talk once again, Jade had taken Sora to the only place she could think of… the shop. After all if anyone could tell Sora what was going on in the universe today it was none other than Battle Instructor, and disbeliever, Quistis Trappe. Rikku had made a big deal about Sora's entrance, which confused the poor hero to no end. When he had left he was not a hero at all nevertheless the huge hero he was today. When Quistis had entered the room she at once spotted Sora and ever so professionally, dropped the potion she had been holding which shattered on the floor. Sora had made some comment about going away for a few weeks and suddenly everyone was shocked to see he was still alive. Rikku had of course told him it had been much longer, but it was Quistis who had to do the hard part. Break his heart. Though it might have been easier if they had allowed Sora to live a lie and think one day he was to be reunited with Kairi, it would have only lead him up to a bigger heartbreak and no one deserved that especially not Sora. It was hard to comprehend what must have been going through his head as Quistis delivered the news. The news that would shatter his heart into a million separate pieces: Kairi was dead. But of course, Sora would not take this sitting down. He objected to it at once calling Quistis a liar and so on. And so the shouting competition had begun. Of course Donald's bad temper was legendary and Sora had a pretty short fuse himself but Instructor Trappe could be pretty convincing if she wanted to be, and right now she wanted to be. The only one in the room who wasn't shouting his head off was Goofy; Jade assumed he was just sitting quietly waiting for the madness in the room to blow over. Jade shook her head it must be horrible to hear what Sora was hearing but he needed to accept what had happened. Living in a lie was going to do him only harm and denial could cause him to loose his Keyblade forever. It seemed endless, as if no one was going to win this battle of the voices. The universe Sora had fought for, had called his home was lost and never going to be found. He could never return to it, to Kairi, and that information must have been hard to believe, even for Sora. "They certainly are yelling an awful lot." Rikku said as Donald burst into some rant about who knows what.

"Got that right." Jade said sweeping up the last of the glistening shards that littered the floor into the dustpan. Rikku stood up depositing the tiny shards into the trashcan. Jade fell backward into a chair listening to the argument that was flaming behind the door. It sounded like a war was going on in there, but that was only wishful thinking on Jade's part. Anything was better than what was really happening behind the door. She didn't want to listen in but they were shouting so loudly that their was really no choice. It was either that or leave the warm shop to go outside in the freezing rain which was now a torrential downpour. Jade shook her head watching Rikku plop into a chair next to her. There was no end in sight; no winner was ever going to rise up among the others.

"You're wrong! You have to be! Kairi isn't gone! I would never let that happen to her!" Sora shouted his voice clearly heard through the wooden door separating him from Jade and Rikku. "I can't believe you! Not if you say that! They aren't gone! Not Kairi! Not Riku!" Jade looked at Rikku raising a questioning eyebrow. Sora only had half of that right. Kairi was gone but-

"Look Kairi is gone! It's just a fact of the future Sora! No matter how much you denying it won't change what has happened!" Quistis's voice interrupted Jade's train of thought. This was how the argument had been going: Sora objected and called Quistis a liar, Quistis yelled at Sora telling him denying it did nothing, Sora denied it anyway. "This isn't some fairytale Sora! So stop living in your false happy ending and look around you! The Universe has fallen to Darkness! Kairi is gone! And no amount of denial will change that fact! But you can change the Universe! You're the Keyblade Master! Our hope! Our light within the darkest depths of Darkness! Our Hero Sora! You are our hero! So suck it up and start acting more like it! Stop questing for a happy ending because when the Heartless are involved there won't be one to find! So stop treating this like a kid's story! This is life! All around you! This is what really happens! Do you think any of these people have had a happy ending? This isn't some little bedtime story that your mother reads you when she tucks you in! This is the Real World Sora! So stop fantasizing start living in it!" Quistis shouted. Too harsh! Were the first two words that pushed themselves into her mind. Sora wasn't like she and Rikku, he had lost his entire universe not just the world on which he was born. Almost everyone he had known was gone now with just a few exceptions, and Kairi not being one of them. Sora needed time not volume.

"I can't believe you." Sora said his voice returning to a normal volume for what seemed to be the first time ever since the battle had begun. "I WON'T!" He sounded his voice full of rage, but the rage was only a mask for a more powerful emotion that the great hero was suppressing. The door flew open and Sora burst from the room his blue eyes blazing tears streaming down his cheek. Before anyone could say anything he was out of the door his figure vanishing in the pouring rain. Jade was the first to recover from the sunned silence Sora had left in the room.

"I'm going after him!" she announced and before she could even think about what she was doing she had pulled up the hood of her coat and run out into the pouring rain. She had absolutely no idea which way Sora had gone, so she took a wild guess and ran off toward the center of first district. The rain blew against her pounding on her face with almost painful force. Jade looked around her seeing the figure of Sora standing in front of the two doors that separated this world from the next. Jade walked up behind him putting a hand on his shoulder, he tensed at her touch hand tightening his grip on his Keyblade. "You know she's right don't you?" Jade asked softly. The rain seemed to quiet slightly and Sora seemed to relax hearing and recognizing Jade's voice.

"Yes," he replied his voice almost inaudible as it blended in with the steady thud of the rain. "I don't want to believe it, but deep down inside I know she's right." He stared at his feet not turning to look at Jade or pulling away from her. "It's just so hard to accept… everything seems like a bad dream, that I'm just going to wake up and realize none of this is real…"

"It's like that for everyone who looses something or someone close to them. And for you… you lost a lot Sora, but that's no reason to just give up." She didn't need to force the confidence into her voice; she knew Sora could do it, if only he believed in himself.

"You don't understand," Sora said shaking his head. He pulled away from Jade looking at his feet. Jade walked in front of him looking at him the concern that filled her heart was not visible on her face; she had to make Sora believe once again or just as before she'd be the only Keyblade Master.

"Then make me understand." Jade said simply. There was a moment of silence that made it seem like the world around her had fallen completely silent the only people on the planet just seemed to be she and Sora. Sora looked up from his feet, bringing himself up to his normal height. He looked down at Jade; his cool blue eyes were no longer blazing in anger as they looked into her mismatched blue and green eyes.

"Kairi…" he said softly. "She was the one I always looked to, the one I was trying to protect. I always thought about her when things seemed hopeless, and then I knew I could get out of there. I had to. I had a promise to her I had to keep. She meant everything to me…" Sora said his voice sounded as pained as he looked. His eyes gleamed with emotional agony that the mere thought of Kairi had burned into him. "She was my light." he said looking away the pain too much to handle. Tears joined the rain that spilled down his face, Jade shook her head.

"You're wrong about that Sora." she said calmly. Sora looked up at her his eyes showing a mix of confusion and suspicion. He had no idea where this conversation was headed but Jade did. She had to tell Sora the part of the truth he needed to hear most. "Your light is yours Sora, no one else's. All these people who live in the universe today, they need you more than Kairi ever did. Your needed here Sora, and whether or not you'll help us is up to you. But I believe in you Sora. I know you can do this. You can save us." Jade said her voice was only a whisper by the end of her speech.

"You…" Sora said quickly, but he fell silent looking at Jade, behind his sharp blue eyes his mind was racing trying to comprehend everything Jade had said. Jade hoped Sora saw what she said was truth. Only he could bring the light back. "You're right." Sora said after a long silence. "I let my world fall to darkness and that was a mistake. I won't mess up again. I'll bring

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Yes Riku will be having a bigger part comming up but that's all I'm saying. 


	6. A World of Darkness

Hi! Next chapter is up. Um... WARNING: First paragraph is long and science fictoin... ish... I can be a bit confusing.

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Jade sat in the Gummi ship, the old outdated model was originally owned by the three heroes themselves: Sora, Donald, and Goofy. Donald was at the wheel and Goofy operated the weaponry, they made a pretty good team. And the entire adventure was documented by a member of the party Jade had been previously unaware of. A small cricket by the name of Jiminy had been given the job to document the entire journey for future ages. Jade smirked to herself wondering what her history teacher would have said if she brought back Jiminy's journal. The Gummi ship's mechanics were now Quistis and Rikku, though mostly Quistis; the original mechanics, Chip and Dale had left to tell the Queen where Sora had gone. That had been thousands of years ago though and whether or not they actually ever made it back was a mystery to all. It had been Quistis's idea to leave Traverse Town in the first place. She had suggested they go to another world seeing that there was only so much training she could do to prepare Jade for the universe beyond Oz and the tiny town. They were headed to the world known as Wonderland, Sora's idea and he would not be persuaded otherwise. Wonderland was a world Jade was very familiar with. A lot had changed since Sora vanished, including the ignorance and safety of the worlds around him. The worlds now were all quite aware of one another, and Wonderland and Oz were actually very close… were they really allies? So much had changed since Sora had left it was enough to make anyone's head spin. Every world in Sora's time had been defined by a particular boundary, within this boundary there was a certain understanding of reality that in that world was considered to be truth. This was the reason for the no meddling law that was now completely useless. For if an outsider meddled in worldly affairs it would introduce a new truth to a world that for so long only saw things one way it could spark an unstoppable chaos that could throw the entire universe into pandemonium. Two truths could not coexists without contradicting one another, and that is why when Darkness came and the boundaries melted away into nothing the universe had little choice but to give in to the Darkness. The worlds reacted differently to the chaos around them which separated the worlds that vanished entirely, from the worlds that ended up like torture chambers, from the worlds like Oz that went into hiding and tried to remain hidden. Some of the worlds panicked when they felt their boundary slipping away. This caused complete pandemonium to rise up within the world making it easy picking for the Heartless. Worlds like this shattered within days and sink into the darkest depths of Oblivion never to see the light again. Other worlds took a different approach, they fought back against everything. It was a kind of mass paranoia that seized everyone on its surface making them strike out against anything new and strange that was introduced to their world. The madness that seized this world was the same kind that previously drove the worlds into Oblivion. But this path only delayed their destruction, turning them into torture chambers making all who reside upon it miserable, pained, ruthless, and insane. That was what happened to Wonderland. But Oz was the third type a type that tried at first to form an alliance with the other worlds. But that soon failed; the various truths of the other worlds all contradicting one another. Soon the very chaos the alliance was formed to prevent broke out among the people involved in it. And in the confusion Oz's witches and the Wizard himself, cast a spell hiding Oz, until recently when at last the Heartless had found them again.

"Hey Jade!" Sora's voice broke through her thoughts like a knife. She looked over he was sticking his head out of one of the doors. Jade walked over to him, she had become pretty good friends with Sora in the few weeks they had trained together. He was determined to fulfill his promise which was both good and bad. He would stop at nothing until he had fixed what in his mind, was all his fault.

"What is it?" Jade asked trying to see whatever it was that Sora wanted to show her. Sora grinned and beckoned her to follow him down a narrow hallway. Though Sora still missed Kairi, he had cheered up since when he was first informed about her death, not that he was cheerful, but he wasn't depressed and he had been getting better. Jade looked at him curiously as he descended a ladder still beckoning her to follow. "Where are we going?" Jade asked putting her hand on the ladder.

"I want to show you something." Sora said with a grin. Jade shrugged and followed him down the ladder. He jumped off landing without a sound on the floor of a room Jade had not been in before. Then again this was his Gummi ship so it made sense that he knew a lot about it.

"I still don't understand what you want to show me." Jade said jumping off the ladder behind him, but she didn't land as lightly, though she could have if she wanted too. She was under strict orders by Quistis to keep her magic to the bare minimum so she could not glide to the floor as Sora had done. For some reason Quistis was just like Jade's mother when it came to magic. And Jade was supposed to keep it a secret from pretty much everyone. It turns out witches are easy to find if they use their magic, and if people knew Jade was a witch if in some kind of horrible emergency she had to use her magic they could use it to track down Sora and the last thing they wanted to do was put Sora at risk. So it was worse than on Oz, at least on Oz Sean and Collin had known about her powers. And Sean had even more power stored away within him. Jade often wondered what had become of her black haired friend.

"You don't see it?" Sora asked with false surprise but Jade could see amusement gleaming in his crystal blue eyes. He folded his arms shaking his head as if disappointed in her. Jade raised an eyebrow at him unsure about what Sora was aiming at.

"No I don't see it." Jade replied. She put her hands on her hips watching the great hero with interest wondering where in Oz he thought this conversation was going. "So what is it, you wanted to show me a wall or something? I don't see it Sora." Jade said at last.

"Really? Then try turning around." he said with a grin. Jade shrugged and turned around and at once the sight behind her took her breath away. Behind her was a rather large window looking out at the most beautiful sight space had to offer. The light of the remaining stars was sprinkled out against the infinite black background of space. It looked like she was gazing out into infinity itself. Jade walked over to it pressing her hand against the glass. It was by far the most amazing sight she had ever witnessed. Even though there weren't half as many stars as their would have been back in Sora's day it still looked like the Emerald city at night, bright spectacular, amazing, a sight the eye never tired if. Though this sight was far more spectacular than anything the Wizard himself could create. "Thought you'd like it." Sora said walking up next to her his eyes focused on the brilliant display of lights before them. "I'd show Rikku too but she's a bit occupied with getting this old ship to fly."

"It's amazing Sora," Jade said softly unable to tear her gaze away from the sight before her. On the way back she would have to pull Rikku away from Quistis, if only briefly, to let her look at something this mind bogglingly beautiful. For once Jade didn't feel as homesick, if she had not left Oz she would never have seen this utterly amazing sight.

"Sora, Jade, Quistis, and Rikku, you might want to report to the cockpit ASAP." Donald's voice drew Jade's reluctant mind away from the beauty of the stars and back into the interior of the Gummi ship. She looked up at the intercom. It was the first time Donald had used it on the trip, and by the look on Sora's face Donald obviously didn't use it very often.

"We better go see what's going on." Sora said a bit of worry slipping into his features. Jade nodded following him back into the cockpit. Quistis and Rikku had already beaten them there and Quistis was leaning over Donald staring in disbelief at the sight before them. "What's going on," Sora asked but at once he fell silent. Jade knew what she was going to see before she even laid eyes on it.

"Not pleasant looking from up here is it?" she asked looking at the dark forbidding world before her. What in Sora's time had been a cheerful and colorful land had been twisted into one of the most horrible worlds to set foot on. Jade hoped Sora would change his mind now about going there; this world was literally a mad house. Though previously Wonderland had indeed been a rather insane world it was now inhabited by the most psychotic creatures imaginable. They were ruthless, merciless, and most had no sense of right or wrong driven only by their twisted paranoia to kill anything that moves. Sora nodded meaning for Donald to continue his descent onto the planet. "Wait! You mean we're still going?" Jade asked slightly panicked by Sora's decision.

"Of course we are." Sora said as-a-matter-of-factly. He acted as if Wonderland had not changed at all from the one he had visited but the dead world before him was not something to be toyed with. The creatures there could and would kill him first change they got. Driven mad by the darkness the creatures of this underworld both hate it and love it, it had become their very essence; their very being and they would do anything for it. "I said I'd fix this universe and I meant it. I'm not turning any world down. Not even Wonderland."


	7. A Forgotten World

Hurray for the next chapter! I have gotten it up! Finally!

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Sora looked up; from the way he had just come there was only darkness to be seen. He could hardly believe the world around him was Wonderland. Every corner pulsed with darkness; every creature seemed to breathe it. It seemed to be the planet's life source, the only thing keeping it from shattering, but at the same time it was the very thing that would cause the planet to shatter, if Sora didn't do something about it. The Keyblade felt warm under his touch but even the light of the Keyblade could do little to brighten this desolate landscape. What had he done? This was all his fault, every creature that now fed only on Darkness to stay alive had him to blame. If he had just been there- Sora shook his head, he could feel guilty all he wanted later, and right now he had to bring this world back to the light it had once known. He looked behind him at the two members of his party he had chosen to take along, the others had to stay in the Gummi Ship and avoid Heartless Ships because the new Wonderland had no safe place to land. Every inch of this world was crawling with darkness so thick it just seemed to suffocate the light right out of it. It was dangerous for just three people to take on, but he had faith in the two he had picked out. He chose Jade because he was in dire need of another Keyblade Master if he had any hopes of lifting the suffocating blanket of darkness that was wrapped tightly around the world on which he was standing. And he had chosen Rikku, mostly because Donald, Goofy, and Quistis were the only three who knew how to actually operate the ship, not that Rikku wasn't a good fighter, because she was extremely skilled, but he would rather have had Donald or Goofy with him, that way he knew the strengths and weaknesses of at least one person in the party. But he really had little choice about who he chose to go with him on this mission. He hoped three would be enough to fight off whatever evils now inhabited Wonderland… and for some reason he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched. Whenever he turned around he could feel the eyes of his secret stalker on his back, but when he turned to look there was nothing there behind him. This was a feeling most got in Wonderland, and normally they were right, this was exactly why Sora hated it so much. He was probably right. He would have preferred being wrong in this case, because being right meant someone or something was observing him, and he couldn't tell if it was on his side not. He walked forward through the halls toward the Bizarre Room, and almost as if it were automatic Jade and Rikku followed. He really didn't blame them for not wanting to be lost within the twisted world of Wonderland. But no matter how far he moved the feeling of being watched from within the shadows would not leave him. He turned around quickly Keyblade in hand showing whoever it was that he was armed and ready, and he did get a reaction, just not the one he was expecting. "Key Wielder you have returned." a low voice hissed from the darkness around him.

"Wha-Ahhh!" Sora cried as something sprung from the shadows and knocked him over standing triumphantly on top of him. Sora saw a flash of metal as Jade's Keyblade came uncomfortably close to hitting him, but missed and threw the creature off of him; sending it sliding across the floor of the hall.

"I have seen some sick and disturbing things in my lifetime but this is defiantly the worst." Jade's voice said from somewhere to Sora's left. The Keyblade Master brought himself to his feel and looked at the creature that had attacked him. Jade had a point, it was a cat like creature with its eyelids drawn back and its eyes were dirty yellow. If it had fur it was hard to see; all that Sora could see was its skin clinging to its bones and strange markings covering the body from the tip of its bloody foot to the top of his tattered ears. The cat had two golden earrings in one ear and a smile that seemed all too familiar to Sora. Its smile stretched across its face, its lips were drawn back to reveal blood stained fangs. At once Sora knew what this creature was, he had met it once before.

"Cheshire cat, what happened to you?" Sora asked looking at the deformed cat before him. The cat's horrific smile only widened at Sora's words. His yellow eyes watched Sora's every move, as if ready to pounce once again.

"What happened to me? It is what happened to all in Wonderland. Madness has become our greatest ally, so we embrace all it stands for. I need not know who you three be. Key Holder, Dual Wielder, Gun Holder, you come to Wonderland to help? Or too harm further? Be you here to help, then spend time not on me but on Alice who needs you three." The cat sang its voice not cheerful any longer but more of a low raspy chant that seemed to make the entire party shudder.

"Ok I'm with Jade on this one." Rikku said as the cat began to vanish. Fist its bloody paws, worn down from all the running, then its thin legs, followed by its starving torso, then its bony neck. Soon it was just a head floating above the ground, but the head too began to vanish leavening nothing but the blood stained grin looming menacingly before them. "That is just sick and wrong!" Rikku pointed out. The grin hovered a bit longer as if mocking Sora's two female companions before it too vanished along with the rest of its owner. Sora shook his head, this was worse than he though if the cheerful cat had been turned into that… that… monster.

"Hurry, let's go find Alice, if the Cheshire Cat speaks the truth I bet you anything she'll be in the Queen's court again." Sora instructed. The two girls nodded following him into the Bizarre Room. The cat had said Alice was still alive and if Sora had the chance to save the Princess of Heart he would take it. The Bizarre Room was dark; its colorful walls were rotting away as the world seemed to collapse into Darkness. He spotted the "Drink Me" potion on the table and picked it up. "Drink up girls." he ordered. His two companions stared at him as if he were crazy. But he took a drink of it himself showing them he meant it. He tossed it to Jade.

"This is wrong on so many different levels." Jade muttered before taking a drink of the potion herself. She tossed it to Rikku who looked at both of them as if they were crazy and then drank the potion as well. At once all three began to shrink. "Ok you might want to warn us next time what a potion is going to do to us before we drink it." Jade said looking around her at the now giant furniture.

"It didn't kill you did it?" Sora asked taking out his Keyblade. Jade looked as if she was about to respond but was interrupted when a red dragon like Heartless swooped down almost colliding with her. Sora quickly pushed her out of the Heartless's path and sliced at the Heartless with his Keyblade.

"Thanks." Jade said looking as if she could hardly believe Sora had helped her. What did she think he was going to do, let it hit her, she was on his team after all he wasn't just going to let a Heartless kill her. A Blizzard spell hit the Heartless and he looked seeing Rikku with her gun out. The Heartless lunged for Sora this time who blocked and sliced it again delivering the final blow. With a final cry the Heartless fell to the ground vanishing. Sora looked to see Jade fighting off a rather fat Heartless and Rikku fighting off multiple small red Heartless that kept blasting fire at her. Sora heard something else that grabbed his attention.

"I'm late! I'm late! For a very important date! No time to say hello, goodbye! I'm late! I'm late! I'm late!" Sora knew at once who was speaking even before the white rabbit, or the creature that had formally been the white rabbit, came into view. The rabbit wore tattered bloodstained clothes. A top hat sat on its head its two very tattered ears poked out from it. It carried a pocket watch, checking it every so often with abnormally large slanted eyes. And hopped past Sora without a glance. "The Queen she'll have my head for this for sure!"

"Follow the white rabbit!" Sora ordered chasing after the rabbit. The white rabbit was far from white its fur was filthy and more gray than white now. But it was the same rabbit, and it sounded like he was headed to the Queen's court again. Sora followed him through the hole and out into the once luscious gardens of the Queen of Hearts.

"Order! Order!" the Queen's voice called, but it did not sound at all like the Queen Sora remembered. Her voice was smooth and feminine, calming, almost like Cinderella's. "Where is the defendant?" The Queen asked. Sora walked over to the edge hiding behind the dieing brush his cool blue eyes seeing the Queen for the first time. She was slim with cold dark eyes and soft raven hair. Her skin was as pale as moonlight but her lips were as red as roses, at least one person in Wonderland had not turned into a monster. Cards walked past Sora dragging something behind them which they deposited before the Queen. "Someone wake her up." The Queen muttered her voice and face showing obvious boredom. A card hit the hostage who shot awake.

"Here's a piece of advice: Wait until I actually do something before putting me on trial." the figure said mockingly. Her voice was harsh, obviously she was a girl around Sora's age, could this be Alice? He moved closer up, seeing the girl for the first time. Dark brown hair fell straight down her back she wore a tattered blue dress and an even more tattered white apron but Sora could make out no more about her, he could only see the back of her from the angle he was at.

"Alice McGee, you are under arrest for the attempted theft of my Heart." The Queen said calmly leaning over her stand to get a better look at the girl she was accusing. Her cold black eyes gleamed triumphantly the pleasure of catching the girl shone clearly on her face. "I find you guilty as charged. Why? Well because I say so that's why." Her pale white hand released the Heat shaped ceptor briefly and clutched the wooden gavel banging it lightly on the desk before her.

"Oh come on," the girl, Alice, muttered angrily. Sora had trouble believing this girl was Alice, first of all Alice was blonde second of all she would never have spoken in such a sarcastic manner to anyone nevertheless the Queen of Hearts. "As much as I would love to rip your still beating heart out of your chest, it's rather hard to steal something you don't have." Sora couldn't believe any of the words that came out of Alice's mouth. What had happened to the innocent little girl he had saved. "You know what? This is stupid. I'm wasting my time." Alice said hopping off the stand and kicking a near by card to the ground. She dodged the blows of the card's spears with ease and stepped on the foot of one of the guards closest to the Queen. The card yelled and Alice punched it in the jaw with considerable force making it drop a rather large sword that, Sora assumed, had previously belonged to her. Picking the sword up; she fought off any of the cards that came near her without a single hesitation and ran off into the Lotus Forest, Sora at her heals and Jade and Rikku close behind. Sora stopped; reaching the other side of the dieing forest without seeing Alice. It was almost like she had just vanished into thin air.

"Sora! Look out!" Jade called from a few yards away, she and Rikku were not as fast as he was and they had a bit of trouble keeping up. Sora had no time to react because at once Alice was on him. One second he's looking for her the next she's on top of him blade pointed at his throat. The silver metal was already splashed with blood so Sora had little doubt that Alice would kill him.

"Why were you following me?" Alice asked angrily. Sora looked up and found himself staring into two dark emerald eyes. Her eyes were so cold, so dark that Sora felt he would have been better off giving himself to the Heartless than with her. Her eyes had no pupils at all only green, cold, dark green. "And remember," Alice said so angrily her voice was almost a hiss. "I don't like liars."

"Give him a break Alice." said a calm male voice from behind Alice. That voice! It sounded so familiar! Was it possible? Sora felt his heart speed up even more, not from terror this time but from hope, was it possible. "He's been a bit out of it for about three thousand years. Isn't that right Sora?" Sora recognized the voice at once. There was no mistaking the speaker before he even laid eyes on him.

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Don'tcha hate it when I leave ya hanging like that? Please review! 


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